No !SSL! folder created

[OLHNewbie]

I do not understand why when I generate my OLH as FlashHelp and specify an output folder, no !SSL! folder is created. What am I doing wrong?

Thanks!

[Captiv8r]

Welcome to our community

When you say you "specify an output folder" are you saying you removed anything in the field and replaced it with the folder name you wanted? If so, you wiped out the !SSL! folder.

Cheers... Rick

Helpful and Handy Links RoboHelp Wish Form/Bug Reporting Form Begin learning RoboHelp HTML 7, 8 or 9 within the day! Adobe Certified RoboHelp HTML Training SorcerStone Blog RoboHelp eBooks

[OLHNewbie]

When I right-click FlashHelp (Primary Layout) in RoboHelp 8 and select Generate, the Output Folder and Start Page filed shows C:\w\8-30-11\SecMgr_OnlineHelp\Security_Manager.htm. I click Next and Finish, and no !SSL! folder appears in the destination location.

Also, each next day I regenerate, I will need to create a different date folder. How can I specify that path, unless I change it in the Output Folder and Start Page field?

[Captiv8r]

Hello again

The field you mention was changed at some point. If you are the only person that has ever worked with this help project, you decided to change it somewhere along the way. If you inherited the project, your predecessor changed it for some reason.

There is no !SSL! because the path you listed doesn't reference it. RoboHelp is sometimes too flexible and allows you to make nearly any change you like. If you want a !SSL! folder you will need to add it back into the mix.

You might try right-clicking the Single Source Layouts pod and choosing to create a new layout. See if RoboHelp will then offer its normal default path which would include the !SSL! folder.

Cheers... Rick

Helpful and Handy Links RoboHelp Wish Form/Bug Reporting Form Begin learning RoboHelp HTML 7, 8 or 9 within the day! Adobe Certified RoboHelp HTML Training SorcerStone Blog RoboHelp eBooks

[OLHNewbie]

OK. You are right. When I select a WebHelp rather than FlashHelp, it does show the right path. I need to upload the output to SVN and check it in. I was told to do so I needed to specify a different directory other than the one in which the help was generated, so each time I regenerate it, the results will go into the properly dated output folder. If I generate as you say, do I simply copy the !SSH! folder to the newly dated folder and check it in?

Thanks so much!

[Captiv8r]

Hello again

Sounds painful and convoluted! I do understand that developers often make screwy demands on us and I'm assuming this is what is behind asking you to store your OUTPUT files in their SOURCE control system. But from their standpoint I suppose your output constitues part of their source.

You might investigate using the Publishing feature of RoboHelp. You could create a specific publishing destination. Then generate and Publish to your destination. All you would need to do at that point would be to simply rename the folder if you like so that it has the correct date, since it seems they are asking for that.

Cheers... Rick

Helpful and Handy Links RoboHelp Wish Form/Bug Reporting Form Begin learning RoboHelp HTML 7, 8 or 9 within the day! Adobe Certified RoboHelp HTML Training SorcerStone Blog RoboHelp eBooks

[OLHNewbie]

Can you clarify what you mean by RoboHelp's Publishing feature? How is that different than generating?

[Captiv8r · Accepted solution]

Hi there

When you work your way through the different options in the !SSL! properties you see an area where you define Publishing characteristics.

Perhaps you have never noticed, but when you generate WebHelp or FlashHelp, you end up with a dialog that has several buttons. The most often used button is likely "View Result". But next to it is typically a disabled button that reads "Publish".

Perhaps it's best to think of baking muffins. You mix up the batter and bake the muffins, right? That's like RoboHelp mixing your ingredients together and creating FlashHelp. After your muffins are baked, they are sitting on top of the stove. With RoboHelp, the output files and folders are sitting in the output folder.

The point being that some process has to occur to transfer the muffins from the stove to the display case where folks may view and purchase them. Likewise, with RoboHelp, you need to copy that content to a location where others may view or otherwise consume it. That process is called Publishing.

In short, you Generate and that is like mixing the ingredients to create the content. You Publish and that is the process of copying the content from the location where you generated to the location where others have access to your content.

Make sense?

Cheers... Rick

Helpful and Handy Links RoboHelp Wish Form/Bug Reporting Form Begin learning RoboHelp HTML 7, 8 or 9 within the day! Adobe Certified RoboHelp HTML Training SorcerStone Blog RoboHelp eBooks

[OLHNewbie]

I'll give it a try. I think we can make it work by just copying my whole folder to a folder with the date, and check that in. I'll do both and compare. Thank you for your patient, detailed response, RIck!